Rap, hip-hop artists to hold rally against proliferation of heroin abuse in Vernon

Google MapsA map view of Mountain Creek by Route 94 in Vernon, where an anti-drug abuse rally and 2-mile walk will be held on Friday.

VERNON — A loosely knit group of rap and hip-hop artists will gather in Vernon Friday to rally against the proliferation of heroin abuse.

Marchers — who are being asked to dress in black — are scheduled to meet at 4 p.m. in the parking lot at the Mountain Creek North ski resort. A 2-mile walk will kick off at 5 p.m. along Route 94, with demonstrators returning to Cobblestone Village at Mountain Creek.

"It’s hard to tell who’s organizing it — that’s the beauty of what’s going on here," said local rap artist and co-organizer Timmy Grins. "It’s about kids coming together and saying, ‘We’re not going to take it anymore.’ "

After returning to the village, an open mic will be available to marchers to share their concerns about the rising use of heroin. Live musical performances by Renegade, a hip-hop band, and Keitchos Peachos, a reggae/funk band, will follow. The rally is expected to end at 10 p.m.

Grins, a 1994 graduate of Vernon Township High School, said the event has been publicized on Facebook, as well as at several area high schools. Based on the attention the event has received on Facebook, Grins said he expects more than 300 protesters, most people in the late teens or early 20s, to attend the rally.

"Their friends are dropping like flies," said Grins, a recovering alcoholic who was the master of ceremonies at an anti-underage drinking event in April in Vernon.

Barbara Adolphe, executive director of the Newton-based Center for Prevention and Counseling, said the rally should be effective in raising awareness about the heroin problem in Sussex County.

"This is truly a grassroots movement and I’m hoping that it will open people’s eyes," said Adolphe, noting there have been seven overdose deaths in the county since January — four attributed to heroin and three caused by prescription drugs.